Leonard Wood Remembers A Bad Bull And One Tough Texan

1969 Indy 500 Front Row. Andretti (C-1967) and Foyt (R-1972) are still the only IndyCar drivers to go to the Daytona 500 and give the NASCAR boys a schooling.

The Motorcraft/Quick Lane team heads to Texas Motor Speedway this week for the Duck Commander 500, and just like every time that either NASCAR or any other circuit visits the Lone Star state, it isn’t long before A.J. Foyt’s name comes up.

Foyt, a native of Houston, Texas, is regarded as one of the greatest drivers of all time. His name is almost synonymous with the Indianapolis 500, which he won four times. He’s considered one of the best sprint car drivers ever. He won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He’s also one of just a few drivers to be able to come from the Indy car circuit to NASCAR and achieve the same success in stock cars that he did in open-wheel cars.

But, in fairness to other open-wheelers who have tried NASCAR with limited success, most of them didn’t get to drive the iconic Wood Brothers Ford and work with Hall of Fame crew chief Leonard Wood.

Foyt and the Woods; in their relatively brief time together, put together a record that is likely unmatched in auto racing, and Foyt’s record in other NASCAR cars didn’t come close to matching what he did with the Woods.

In just 11 career starts in the Wood Brothers Ford, Foyt started on the pole six times and won four races and they were some of NASCAR’s premier events. Their win list includes the 1972 Daytona 500 along with two victories at Ontario Motor Speedway and one at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Foyt also had a third-place finish in the 1971 Daytona 500, a fourth place finish at Charlotte, and runner-up finishes at Atlanta and at the old Texas World Speedway in College Station, where he started from the pole, a qualifying effort that earned him one of the more unique Texas trophies – a bull.

“That was the meanest bull you ever saw in your life," recalled Leonard Wood. “You could tell by looking at the people that were handling him and by the way he kept banging his head on the boards of the pen."

Wood said that mercifully, it wasn’t on him to corral the beast. “That was A.J.’s bull," he said.

Although Wood’s driver had a reputation of being kind of like that bull at times, Leonard Wood enjoyed dealing with him.

During a period of transition in NASCAR in the early 1970s, Foyt called the Woods and asked to drive their car. Having worked with him before, the Woods said yes.

“We got along great," Wood said. “He was the type guy that you explained to him what you were doing to the car, and everything was fine."

Wood said that once at Ontario, Foyt requested a change of a right-front spring during practice. Wood made the change, and Foyt tried it out and said he liked it.

“He came in and said it felt good," Wood said. “I said yeah, but you’re a half a second slower."

“He said, ‘Put it back.’ You just needed to know how to work with him."

Wood said that Foyt was able to come from Indy cars to NASCAR and find success because of his ability to adapt.

“It’s a different style of racing," he said. “Some of them just don’t catch on. I loved the way A.J. drove."

Wood said Foyt, like many of the other great champions in motorsports, knew what it took to get to Victory Lane.

“If he had the car and a chance to win, he knew how to win," Wood said, adding that the Woods also worked with Foyt on the USAC stock car circuit, winning a pole at Milwaukee and a race at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

While Foyt and the Woods eventually went their separate ways, with Foyt focusing on Indy car and the Woods continuing in the Sprint Cup series, the bonds forged during the early 1970s remain strong.

“We still respect A.J., and he still respects us," Wood said.

Ordinarily, Leonard Wood would be at Texas Motor Speedway supporting Ryan Blaney and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team during the Duck Commander 500, but this weekend is different.

He’s staying home to attend the wedding of his granddaughter Carlin Witt.

“Granddaughters are pretty special," Wood said.

Qualifying for the Duck Commander 500 is set for Friday at 6:45 p.m. eastern, and the race is set to get the green flag just after 7:30 p.m. on Saturday with TV coverage on FOX.